David Jaffe Joins Autoduel Project

Indie developer Pixelbionic announces Twisted Metal creator has joined
their advisory board to help create Autoduel, an online PC car combat game that
is boasting of a "dream team" of developers (which includes Scot Kramarich,
suggesting this may be a dream come true for Interstate '76 fans like
myself). They plan on launching a Kickstarter for the game and promise details
"shortly," and in the meantime they present their
Facebook page and offer this
announcement:

Santa Ana, CA – May 16, 2013 – Pixelbionic, an independent
game developer committed to creating immersive action games, today announced
that David Jaffe, legendary creator of gaming milestones Twisted Metal and God
of War, has joined the company’s advisory board as a Creative Advisor for its
inaugural project, vehicular combat game Autoduel™. Jaffe is the latest addition
to Pixelbionic’s development ‘Dream Team’, assembled for the game by co-founders
Maxx Kaufman - a founding member of InXile Entertainment and Art Director of
Return to Castle Wolfenstein, Kingpin: Life of Crime and The Bard’s Tale, and
Mike Arkin - a Studio Head and Producer with over 150 published titles,
including Die Hard Trilogy, Battlezone and the Tokyo Xtreme Racer series.

Other key members of the Autoduel team include designer Scot Kramarich - Lead
Designer of Interstate ‘82 and Designer on Interstate ’76 - and coder Rafael
Paiz - Senior Programmer on The Matrix: Path of Neo and Programmer on Redneck
Rampage and Return to Castle Wolfenstein. Joining David Jaffe on Pixelbionic’s
advisory board are Zack Norman - creator of Interstate ’76, and Chanel Summers -
a recognized leader in the field of interactive audio who while at Microsoft was
instrumental in the design of the Xbox hardware’s audio capabilities.

Autoduel is a PC online multiplayer game which pays homage to epic car combat
games of the past such as Interstate ’76 and Twisted Metal—while offering gamers
the chance to see what can be accomplished when a talented team of experienced
developers is unleashed on modern hardware with cutting-edge graphics and online
multiplayer capabilities. The game combines the high-octane thrills and spills
of team-based car combat with RPG-influenced persistence and progression
gameplay.

In a post-apocalyptic future, warriors drive to survive in their tricked-out,
heavily armed vehicles scavenged from the blistered landscape, armed with a
deadly array of lethal weaponry. Autoduel features team-based combat in a
variety of open arenas from abandoned cities to dried-up riverbeds. Players
choose from over twenty unique cars which are divided into three warring
factions - the Ratters, the Scavengers and the Techies. The cars can all receive
a wide variety of upgrades, from mechanical modifications to the drivetrain and
suspension, to a broad array of powerful weapons and protective armor which can
be bolted onto the vehicles. Additionally, players can extensively customize the
paintwork and add decals in order to show their allegiance and express their
unique style.

“I was super excited when I heard Pixelbionic’s vision for Autoduel,” said
Pixelbionic creative advisor David Jaffe. “As a huge fan of the genre, I’m
really looking forward to contributing to the game’s vision and design goals.”

Pixelbionic was founded to create spirited games such as Autoduel that are
ignored by publishers, leaving the door open to independent developers supported
by fans of the genre. Autoduel development funding will be crowdsourced, with a
Kickstarter campaign launching soon.

“Our mission is to assemble a team of car combat visionaries to deliver the game
fans want to not only play but also help create,” said Pixelbionic co-founder
and President Mike Arkin. “Autoduel pairs the vision of the best talent in the
industry with the enthusiasm and support of gamers, a combination we are
confident will set the bar for what can be achieved in a new PC vehicular combat
game.”

More details on the Autoduel Kickstarter campaign will be released shortly, with
additional core members of the development team expected to be revealed over the
coming weeks.